91-year-old Kirksville resident tries golf for first time

Wednesday

Jul 11, 2012 at 12:01 AMJul 25, 2012 at 2:20 PM

Robert Nagel, a 91-year-old Kirksville resident, played his first round of golf at Kirksville Country Club Tuesday.

Bud Schrader

KIRKSVILLE - Lisa Whitley was in a quandary as to what to get her father, 91-year-old retired Truman State professor Roland Nagel, on Father’s Day. It turned out that all she needed to was to check her father’s bucket list.

“He mentioned some of the things that he wanted to accomplish,” Whitley said, “and one of them was to play golf. As a daughter, you pick up on things like that.”

Nagel, who served as the head of the Practical Arts Department at the university for 25 years, played golf for the first time Tuesday.

He played five holes with his daughter and Kirksville Country Club office manager Alan Daniels. Daniels helped direct Nagel and his daughter around the course.

Nagel said he got the motivation to play golf from watching the sport on television.

“I was intrigued by a sport in which you judge accuracy,” he said. “I pitched horseshoes when I was younger and it involved accuracy, too.”

He said he wanted to play golf when he was younger.

“With a wife and two young daughters, it was tough for me to take up the game,” Nagel said. “I couldn’t afford to play at the time.”

Nagel played from the tee on No. 3 but started from 150 yards out on the other four holes he played. He hit a few shots from the driving range before he began.

Nagel hit a pair of approach shots from 50 yards out that landed close to the pin on holes No. 2 and 3.

He hit a shot from the sand trap on No. 2.

“I just wanted to get the feel of the clubs in my hand,” he said. “I had a friend who showed me how to grip a club.”

After playing five holes of golf, Nagel was happy.

“It was a good experience,” he said. “I hit the ball better than what I thought I would. I didn’t know how many holes I would play when I started, I was just hoping to make it past one hole.”

He said he came away also with a greater admiration for the professional players.

“You learn to appreciate what those guys do,” he said. “They can hit the ball where they want to and they don’t get too worried about it.”